A common disorder treated by both orthopedists and chiropractors results from the normal concave inward curve of the cervical spine becoming either straight or reversing so as to curve outward. This condition can result from a hyperextension injury such as a "whiplash" injury resulting from an automobile accident or the like or may be caused by the patient's life-style. Life-style causes for such injuries include occupations such as model or the military which require stiff or rigid posture or professions which require the patient to look down all day such as draftsmen or architects. Such spinal cervical curve disorders can be extremely painful for the patient, particulary where it causes a blocking of the spinal cord opening, resulting in pinched nerves. If this condition is not corrected, it can result in spinal degeneration, further adding to the patient's discomfort. Further, this condition can also cause moderate to severe distortion of nerve function which may result in swelling of limbs, particularly arms and hands, and in a degradation in the patient's ability to use such limbs.
Current therapies for such disorders have been primarily directed at easing the patient's pain, but have not resulted in the muscle retraining in the cervical area required to restore normal neck curvature and to unblocking the foraminal stenosis. Thus, these current therapies, which include traction devices, and soft or semi-soft pillows, are only effective in somewhat easing the patient's pain; they are not effective in either correcting the problem resulting in the pain or in completely eliminating the pain.
A need, therefore, exists for an improved method and apparatus for treating spinal cervical curve disorders, and in particular for a method and apparatus which permits substantially normal cervical curve to be restored in such patients along with unblocking of the spinal cord cavity.
With the current problem of exploding medical costs, it is also desirable that this method and apparatus be relatively inexpensive both to fabricate and to use, and that it be possible for the treatment to be performed on an outpatient basis, preferably in the patient's home. Further, both for reasons of costs and patient comfort, it is desirable that results from the therapy be achievable within a reasonable time frame.